Disclaimer: STVOY is not mine. TPTB own them. Story mine

Wolf Hart

White deer are not albino. Their colouring is caused by leucism, a rare genetic condition that reduces the pigment of an animal's hair and skin. Unlike albinos with their distinctive pink eyes, white deer's eyes are coloured normally.

Dreams can be powerful, especially those coupled with hope; a goal to aim for. Voyager's dream of hope is Earth – to reach 'home' in the Alpha Quadrant. It shone brightly now that they'd established regular contact with Starfleet via the Pathfinder project. For some the dream was an all consuming cold-fire of passion that had to be reached no matter what stood in their way. Thus the dream shone like a search light blinding the eye to everything else. For others it was a reminder of just how far they still had to travel, thus the end of the tunnel appeared no nearer than it had at the beginning of their journey. Others found the dream fading or loosing its lustre becoming tarnished with the general wear and tear of daily living; procuring supplies, seeking safe passage from both man-made and natural hazards through the uncharted region known as the Delta Quadrant

The Doctor was compiling his report – having completed a round of general medicals – which the crew detested at the best of times; but this one had been requested by Starfleet Medical in the latest rounds of communiqué's, to determine the effects of prolonged deep space travel on the crew. An emergency emission arrived in the form of Tom Paris – his reluctant, yet capable assistant – and Commander Chakotay – XO and unofficial ship's councillor. Initial scanner readings were not good news.

"We'll do a deeper scan, Mr. Paris. Please set it up. I have an important call to make," the EMH advised, returning to his office and called Astrometrics.

/\ Seven here. How may I be of assistance, Doctor?/\

"I need you to look for a planet suitable for the crew to take extended shore leave, ASAP."

"Have you cleared this with the Captain?"

"As CMO, Seven I do have discretion in this matter, along with the relevant authority. I'm sending you the search parameters, now," he said, the worried frown not leaving his holographic features.

/\ I'll see what I can discover for you, Doctor. I'd advise that you still inform the Captain. Seven out./\ signing off.

"I wish it were that easy," he muttered to himself, returning to his patient. The deeper scans only confirmed what they already knew, yet it would add more weight to the Doctor's quest to arrange for extended shore leave for the crew, ASAP. "Odd. I would have expected the Captain to have been here, demanding answers by now," he said, having made sure his patient was sleeping comfortably.

"She's assisting B'Elanna with some engineering repairs," Tom said, sighing worriedly and then added in answer to the EMH's unasked question. "She's also trying to persuade the Captain to land the ship so a proper overhaul of a number of maintenance issues can be sorted out safely. We have all the necessary materials; but it requires a space-dock or a land base to complete them."

"Mr. Paris; please give this to Commander. Tuvok. Work with Mr. Kim and Seven on this. She has the search parameter details. Find us a suitable planet and head for it. I'm using a little known medical law in this matter, Mr. Paris," he said, his tone very determined, handing over the prepared PADD. Tom nodded and left, PADD in hand.

/\ Doctor to Captain. Report to my office immediately. Doctor out. /\

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Down in engineering the female Captain sighed at the Doctor's summons. Torres working beside her pursed her lips and scowled at the woman; angry that things weren't going well in getting Janeway to agree to her urgent requests.

"I'll think about it, Lieutenant," she said finally, getting to her feet and dusting down her uniform as she left. B'Elanna Torres knew from the tone as well as the fact that the Captain had only used her rank and not her name, meant that was all Janeway would do, 'think about it.'

"Damn!" she exclaimed, throwing the nearest movable object she could lay her hands on. It clanged across the semi-silent floor, her staff shared her frustrations.

"Lieutenant; please take a break. We can manage," Gilmore gently encouraged. "Please; especially in view of your current medical condition," she added before Torres could snap at her and looking at the Chief engineer's swollen tummy. B'Elanna smiled ruefully.

"We'll call if there's anything you need to know."

"You'd better make sure you do, Crewman," she said, and then eased her heavy bulk out of the area and back to her quarters. Engineering whispered with soft sighs of relief mixed with sadness that their Captain had not agreed to their Chief's request to land the ship, so that a full maintenance overhaul could be scheduled; after all there was only so much one could do safely whilst on the move and in the vacuum of space.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Janeway arrived via the Med-lab, rather than main sickbay, so was unaware of the area's current occupant until the EMH brought him to her attention.

"Yes Doctor," she said with indifference.

"This crew is suffering from Space fatigue. Therefore we must take some extended shore leave away from the ship and space," pausing to gauge her reaction; she only looked at him mildly unconcerned. "How much more do you think this crew can take?" he asked, startling her with the intensity of his words.

"Doctor; we can't afford to stop now. We're so close."

"We can't afford not to," he countered. "I'm not asking you to stop making for home," he sighed at the grim line of her month. "Come with me," he urged leading her from his office to the main area and the one occupied bio-bed.

The person lying there was very familiar to her as he'd sat at her side on the bridge every day since their journey had begun. As she got closer he stirred sensing her presence, his sleep relaxed face frowned anxiously. She stopped a moment and then started forward again, but he became agitated. The Doctor motioned her away.

"Go back to my office, Captain. Now!" he ordered, trying to calm his disturbed patient. Hurt Janeway retreated. He'd never reacted like this before; it was almost as if he feared her. She waited wondering what could have caused this change in her friend.

"He's calm for now. To be honest, I recommend that you'd better keep your distance from him. At least until he recovers," the EMH said, when he rejoined her.

"Will he recover?"

"He might. At present he's suffering from acute exhaustion and chronic fatigue. As is the rest of this crew," looking through his office window at his sleeping patient.

"There is no one else here," she pointed out.

"No?" he questioned, turning on her; the intensity of his gaze unnerved her. "He is here." She frowned puzzled, not understanding what he meant. "Remember all those parties and other little events Mr. Neelix used to arrange, to boost the morale of the crew?" he asked; she nodded. "I once thought that any excuse for a party was Mr. Neelix's motto. I have learnt since that was not the case. He did it primarily to keep you happy; but who would be the first person he'd run his ideas past?"

"Commander Chakotay," her voice soft; still not fully comprehending what he was trying to get her see.

"Who would be the one to give endorsement to those parties, even if they required your approval?"

"Commander Chakotay," moving to look through the office window at the sleeping male, feeling her heart ache for him.

"The Commander has been this vessel's unofficial ship's councillor since your journey began. He is if you like the emotional barometer of this crew's health. I look after their physical and medical needs. Neelix looked after their morale and more or less their dietary needs." His begrudging tone brought a soft smile to her lips. "Whilst Commander Chakotay dealt with their emotional concerns as well as his usual duties as XO. But who looks after the councillor?" pausing to let that sink in. "This crew needs shore leave, extended shore leave and they needed it yesterday; including you, Captain."

"I'll look into it, Doctor," she said tiredly, having heard this argument from several department heads over the last few days; B'Elanna Torres being the latest. About to leave when the Doctor's next words halted her in her tracks.

"No you won't, Captain." She wondered if he'd realised that she'd had no intention of stopping for shore leave or anything else for that matter, even for a short time.

"As CMO I do have discretion in this matter. Therefore in the best medical interests of this crew and its Captain; I have ordered the bridge to search for a suitable haven to land the ship. And before you bark at me that I can not, you'd better read this," he informed her handing over a PADD headed Starfleet Medical. Whilst she read the little known protocol from a time before Starship's had an assigned Ship's Councillor, Seven contacted sickbay.

/\ Location of a suitable planet within the requested search parameters has been identified. Helm has set a course. At current warp speed we should reach orbit within the next 12hrs. /\

"Acknowledged, Seven. Please convey all relevant data to both myself and to the Captain's Ready Room. Doctor out."

Janeway said nothing, just returned the PADD and left. The EMH though reacted in a very human manner; he shuddered with relief that she had not countermanded his orders. One question remained; why had the Commander reacted adversely to Captain Janeway's presence?

"It is almost as if he is afraid of her or for her!" he whispered puzzled to his empty office; hearing the soft subtle changes in the ship's engines as they vibrated throughout the grey bulkheads.

On the bio-bed, Chakotay stirred worriedly in his sleep in response to those vibrations; wanting to feel free of that constant background noise, to feel still, really still. The drugs in his system fully kicked in allowing his body to physically rest, whilst his mind dreamed of racing with his spirit guide/nagual across the open prairies that rumbled; not with thunder across the wide open skies, but through the earth beneath his feet, painfully reminding him that he was in space aboard a starship – a vessel that was never still, never quiet or completely silent, even when at rest.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Bridge was very aware of the Captain's presence even though she just strode from the turbo-lift to her Ready Room without a word to anyone. Tuvok and Paris exchanged understanding looks with each other realising the Captain's mood didn't bode well for anyone, particularly the woman herself. After a moment the Vulcan stood.

"Hold fort and course, Mr. Paris."

"Aye, Sir," he acknowledged, knowing where the dark male was headed and that he was in charge from the helm. Kim watched the proceedings his young eyes worried feeling the lack of the commander's solid calm presence; but he knew from his Op's board that it was Commander. Chakotay who'd required the recent Medical Emergency transport from his office to sickbay. He hoped it wasn't anything too serious and that his gentle presence was back on the bridge very soon.

Tuvok stood quietly watching his friend and Captain listening to her ranting about how she felt that the crew was conspiring against her, preventing her from getting the ship and its crew home.

"Anyone would think I was asking the impossible. We've come so far to stop now…"

"Would be in the best long term interests of this crew's general health, so they can continue to operate at peak efficiency," he said calmly. "You came after me so you could benefit from my Vulcan wisdom. I am offering it to you now, Kathryn Janeway." The use of her name rather than her rank effectively stopped her in her tracks.

"You rarely call me that, Tuvok. Unless you have a good reason too," she noted, eyeing him wondering if she still really knew him. Her developing friendship with Commander Chakotay and lately overseeing Seven's integration into their family had overshadowed her longer friendship with this dark stoic male; Calm, solid, a pillar of strength and normality on an otherwise frantic bridge at times.

"I have good reason, Kathryn Janeway. The medical report from the Doctor," he said quietly, holding out the PADD Tom Paris had given him about an hour before. Slowly she walked toward him and took it. it was a copy of the EMH's orders and response from and to Starfleet Medical ; about the effects of unprepared long term space travel coupled with prolonged not direct contact with Starfleet and Earth.

"The star system we are heading for offers everything we require to repair this vessel and also this crew's 'flagging spirits'; I believe Mr. Neelix would call it."

"He'd be in his element," she reflected quietly with a soft smile. The Talaxian had only been gone a week and already she was missing his exuberant style and cheery nature – things that she'd often found irritating in the past. He'd always make sure that she was happy and well catered for with plenty of coffee; like the hot pot on her desk every morning and other little products, like biscuits or sweetmeats. These still appeared from time to time, yet without the little Talaxian's cheerful chatter. She sighed deeply.

"You know about Chakotay's condition?" she asked sadly sitting behind her desk.

"I'm aware of his condition," he agreed quietly, still standing in his usual pose, watching her in quiet Vulcan reflection.

"Tuvok?" Janeway questioned softly, wondering if he was alright.

"I shall return to the bridge," his voice sounding a little distracted. "Captain," he said and left. After the door closed behind him she frowned worried, hoping there was nothing seriously wrong with her dark friend and security officer. Having her First office absconded in sickbay was worry enough without Tuvok also. She settled down to review all the data both the Doctor and Seven had sent to her.

The planet did indeed meet all of the Doctor's criteria, yet Janeway wondered would it meet hers. Seven and Kim had both been monitoring it via probes sent ahead of them as well as the ship's sensors. It wasn't on any know trader space lanes nor had it been visited by the Borg; but with no visible humanoid presence or technology they would leave it alone. For the most part the planet was covered in large forests with vibrant wildlife, reminding Janeway of some of the North European wild forests. Some areas were like the prairies of North America and the pampas plains of Argentina. Yet something about the place worried her.

Torres had also reviewed the data and found some large sources of mineral deposits that Voyager required and they were conveniently situated near an open plain where they could land the ship safely. It would certainly make repairs that much easier than having to don EVA suits, she thought, putting together a full rosta for maintenance schedule to last at least three to four weeks.

Seven went over the data and scans continually and wondered why this planet had shown up now, seemingly just when the crew really needed it. Food in the form of suitable plant life was plentiful, along with abundant fresh drinking water, from small streams to large rivers and snow locked ice caps at the poles.

The Doctor noted the vibrant warm seas around the planet's equator with wide sandy beaches, islets and tall ragged rocky cliff faces. It was as if the best that Earth had to offer was all put in one place.

"Computer any signs of any alien structures like those of Iconian or Preserver obelisks?" he asked frowning.

#Negative#

"Nothing? Not even the start of one?"

#There is one structure. Not of any known design, neither Iconian or Preserver.#

"Display," he ordered quietly, hoping it would reveal something, yet the structure was as the computer had said, 'of no known design'. "Perhaps the Commander would find this mystery interesting," he murmured to himself gazing at the strange artefact.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

The crew's general response to the prospect of shore leave on the unknown planet was optimistic coupled with a sense of caution, yet that changed as shifts came and went and they still orbited the planet some 24hrs later; making no moves to either send down an Away Team via transporters or shuttle or land the ship herself. Grumblings started to spread as first frustration and then anger slowly reared its ugly head as no definite decision was made about whether to investigate the puzzling paradise planet further.

Chakotay sat in his office reviewing the data from their continuous scans as they orbited a third full 24hrs; also he read the reports from security about some minor incidents of altercation among the crew. The Doctor's report on his medical condition did not make for good reading, especially how it related to the crew's general emotional well being, worried him. He'd already had to deal with the many questions from the junior staff as to when a decision would be made about shore leave or any sort of decision; this indecision was unsettling them.

The whole idea of approaching Captain Kathryn Janeway sent tremors through his whole body, tremors he found increasingly hard to control or understand. It also seemed as if his spirit/nagual had deserted him; he found it hard to meditate. So that he ended up even tenser than before trying to go on a Vision Quest. He needed to relax; getting to his feet, he paced his office floor.

"Enter!" he said in response to his door bell, breathing deep to control his mounting anger and frustration.

"Commander," said the calm cool tones of the Vulcan Security Chief. Surprised Chakotay stared at him; this was the first time that Tuvok had ever paid him a visit here.

"Tuvok?!" startled, feeling himself tremble. Strong arms prevented him from ending up on the floor again and guided his shaking body to the view-port seating. The Vulcan said nothing he just helped the trembling male to sit down and then sat with him, whilst Chakotay held on trying to still himself. After a while his rapid breathing deepened and the trembling subsided.

"Take your time, Chakotay," Tuvok quietly encouraged. Chakotay felt tears well in his eyes, closing them to stem the tide.

"Need to be still," he whispered, holding tightly onto the Vulcan's arms that were steadying him.

"Agreed, Chakotay. We will need to force the Captain's hand and land this vessel," he said matter-of-factly. The tattooed male looked at the dark pointed eared male, realising he'd called him by his given name and not his rank as was usual for this male.

"You feeling the strain also?" he asked, the tremors in his body now more-or-less under his control.

"Yes." That soft admission said more to Chakotay than what his own body was telling him; including all the reports he'd been reading about the crew, the ship and the planet.

"Then we'd better do something now; before this crew mutineers on us," making to stand. The Vulcan aided him and they left Chakotay's office together side-by-side. When the crew saw them, faces determined as they purposefully strode down the corridors and entered the turbo-lift that would take them directly to the bridge; a buzz of puzzlement and apprehension spread through the ship like wild-fire, wondering what was afoot.

They entered the bridge and took quiet command of it. First they checked that the Captain was located in her Ready Room and sealed her in. Chakotay took his own command seat and gave his order.

"Mr. Paris. Co-ordinates have been set for a suitable landing site?"

"Aye, Sir," puzzled, by the two Commander's quiet determination.

"Good. Take us down." No one moved for a moment, until Tuvok made the ship-wide announcement:

/\ All stations to report code blue readiness. /\

Paris swivelled back round to his conn console and set in motion the correct protocols to land the ship. He felt the vessel readily – if not eagerly – response to his commands as if Voyager herself was ready for some shore leave.

At his command chair Chakotay too felt the same subtle difference within the ship; knowing she too was eager to rest. He watched the main view screen as they descended through the white cloud cover toward the blue-green planet. Chakotay knew the Doctor had not exactly been happy about releasing him from his expert care.

"Doctor if I stay here; I'll go crazy. I need to be busy doing something, anything," trembling as he'd paced between the bio-beds. The EMH had gently halted him and nodded understandingly.

"Thank you," he'd breathed relieved.

"Report to me if you need any help," he'd said, before letting the male go. Now he could feel not only the ship responding but also the crew – wary at first – yet following orders as they'd been trained to. As Voyager descended on her glide trajectory; the mood subtly changed to eagerness.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

In engineering when the order for code blue had reached them, they'd been stunned until Torres snapped at them:

"Well don't just stand there. Duty."

"Yes, Ma'am," was the happy chorused reply. B'Elanna smiled to herself not really caring who'd finally given the order, just pleased that it had been taken. She set her largish bulk down and reviewed her list of priorities and crew rosta for the up coming repairs, plus a full systems overhaul; which in her mind was long overdue – again. Although sometime back they'd managed to give the nacelles a proper overhaul; because of Harry Kim's actions that had been cut short and she hated cutting corners with Voyager's engines. Any other part of the ships systems, well they could patch and make do, but not her engines. Now finally they were to get the overhaul they were due and deserved, along with the rest of the ship's systems.

"And you can be quiet," she said to her lump as its internal occupant kicked. Her staff smiled, working happily whilst the ship glided down toward the planet's surface.

'What would they really find?' some wondered; for despite the good scanner results and sensor data it did appear to be 'too good to be true' type of planet.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

In her Ready Room, Janeway failed at first to notice the change in the vessel's noises as she'd been absorbed in the planetary data. Looking up at her view-ports she noticed the blues, greens and sandy browns rushing toward her. Going over she watched as the planet's flora came closer as the ship glided easily down to the wide pampas grass plain close to a fast flowing stream. The thrusters slowed their downward fall easing the ship to the chosen site; landing struts were heard to lock into place before touch down; as she listened - she was not mistaken – in hearing the whole ship sigh with relief. She wasn't sure at that moment whether it was relief at landing safely or because the vessel was on the ground rather than in space. Janeway was startled by the fact that she hadn't been called to the bridge, she then discovered she was locked in.

"Computer on whose authority am I locked in my Ready Room?" she demanded.

#Orders received from Cmdr Chakotay, Lt Cmdr Tuvok and endorsed by the CMO, the Emergency Medical Holographic program.# She was politely informed. Janeway could have sworn the computer had sounded almost gleeful, like a playful child. 'But that was absorbed – wasn't it?'

Kathryn Janeway sat down having failed to convince the computer to set her free from her Ready Room, either directly or site-to-site transport, but to no avail.

#Correct command codes required# She was told.

Meantime on the Bridge, Chakotay ordered the ship to be put on grey-mode and told Harry Kim to co-ordinate with engineering; sure in the knowledge that Lt Torres had finalised the repair and maintenance teams. He stood up and moved to the centre of the command area, which he soon realised, was a mistake, as his body started to shake. Gentle arms held him close to their owner's younger torso.

"Hey steady, Chakotay," said Tom's voice in his ear.

"Duty roster's are in my office as to who does what and when, along with a…skeleton crew."

"Let's get you to bed, Chakotay," Tom said trying to guide the shaking male off the bridge. Kim quietly worked his console, contacting sickbay and apprising the Doctor of the situation; who replied he'd meet his patient in his quarters.

"Computer initiate site-to-site transport of Lt Paris and the Commander from the Bridge to Cmdr Chakotay's quarters," Kim said. The pair were soon enveloped within a blue haze and vanished. Tuvok ordered Delta-B shift to report to the bridge after having locked down all systems. Once the personnel arrived the main Alpha shift left the area to see when they would be taking shore leave and where. Lastly Tuvok released the lock-out on the Captain's Ready Room and then left the bridge himself.

Janeway couldn't believe what was happening, it was as if her senior officers and crew had all but deserted her, pacing the floor angrily; thus she failed to hear the lock-out click off. Happy loud chatter coming from the bridge alerted her that something had changed. Cautiously she stepped out of her room onto the bridge.

"Ma'am?!" a startled crewman said having almost bumped into her small frame. Looking round at the faces of the skeleton crew on the dim-lit bridge there were none that she knew well or were very familiar to her. Seven entered from the turbo-lift in her usual brisk manner.

"Seven," she smiled relaxing a little at the sight of the blonde female.

"Captain; I have gone over every scan and sensor data again. There is nothing wrong with the planet," she said sounding perplexed. "And yet I feel there should be."

"Never look the gift horse in the mouth," a crewman said on passing, with a nervous smile at both females; making for the conn console and went about his business of re-calibration.

"Where is the usual bridge shift? This is Delta-B; I believe?!" looking puzzled at Janeway.

"Don't look at me, Seven. Not my doing," she said and taking Seven's hand left the bridge via the main turbo-lift. With all systems on grey-mode, both females were effectively shut off from the ships major systems; so Janeway headed for Deck 8 cargo-bay 2 and Seven's alcove and work station. There the two continued to work assessing the planetary data together; whilst the rest of the crew made plans for shore leave.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Tom Paris had been very grateful to Harry for his quick thinking with the site-to-site transport and the Doc for his assistance in getting the big tattooed male into bed to sleep. He now hoped that B'Elanna would go along with his partly formulated plans to get Chakotay off ship, plus himself and his heavily pregnant wife.

The woman he sought was sitting or at least trying to – at the computer console in their quarters overseeing last minute preparations for the maintenance overhaul.

"Ok; Vorik. Lock everything down and begin in the morning after breakfast."

/\ Acknowledged, Lieutenant. Sleep well. Vorik out /\

She leaned back into the chair closing her eyes, having closed the channel her end. Tom watched her a moment and then lovingly kiss her cheek whilst stroking her swollen belly.

"Thomas Paris, if you sneak up on me like that…" she didn't finish as his kiss claimed her mouth thoroughly. "Hmm!"

"You were saying?" he teased grinning; helping her out of the chair and to the sofa where they could cuddle up together.

"How's Chakotay?" she asked worriedly.

"Not good, Lanna," he sighed. "He's sleeping for now," pausing to hold her closer. "I do have an idea and it will involve us leaving the ship with him," he quickly put a finger over her mouth stalling her protest. "I know you'd like to oversee things in engineering, but I'm sure your staff are adequately trained and suitably chastened that things will run to schedule without you for a week or two," he said, making her smile.

"Where are we to go, then?" she asked. Paris just gave her the PADD, displaying the alien structure. "What is it?"

"I've no idea. Doc says even the computer hasn't recognised it or matched to anything known. Maybe Chakotay can take a look; after he's rested."

"You really care about him, don't you? Don't come back at me with your usual flippant remarks, Thomas Paris."

"Sure I care, B'Elanna," he said, kissing her forehead softly holding her close to him. "He's a friend I didn't realise I had until we – I almost lost him," he added quietly. "Besides who else around here will put up with me?" he quipped after a few minutes in quiet contemplation.

"You, Thomas Paris are…intolerable!" she snapped, yet her eyes belied her tone of voice. He smiled in response cuddling her as close as her current condition would allow.

"I think this little lady is trying to muscle in on our act," he said making B'Elanna smile; she drew him close and kissed him soundly.

tbc...